


Dead Innocent

by D_f_m22



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-13
Updated: 2019-06-13
Packaged: 2020-05-07 07:42:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,032
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19204936
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/D_f_m22/pseuds/D_f_m22
Summary: “I didn’t do it. I promise...”





	Dead Innocent

**Author's Note:**

> Tiny piece as I wanted to write and this idea came to me.
> 
> I think missy not killing anyone for so long is a pretty big deal. 
> 
> Feedback appreciated

It was late when the sound of the mechanical locks of the vault doors crank into life, signalling the return of the Doctor. Missy- forgoeing her usual act of nonchalance- jumps from her seat at her keeper’s arrival, shifting from foot to foot. Stealing a glance back at the corner of the room, Missy’s eyes fall on a bundle of tissues she’d piled up on top of each other earlier that afternoon. To the unobserving eye, the mound looks to be nothing of note. Upon closer inspection, however, it’s clear the tissues were organised in the fashion of a grave…an ancient sort of grave from somewhere far in the universe. There are only a handful of people left in the universe that would recognise the exact origins of such a grave and two of them were in the Vault. 

Missy swallowed, forcing herself to still and trailing her hand down to rest on her stomach. Her fingers grippeed anxiously at her silk camisole and she waits patiently- or at least tries to wait patiently- as the Doctor puts down his bags and slides out of his rain jacket. All the while, her mind raced in panic as she tries to predict the Doctor’s reaction. This was new territory for her- it had been centuries since she’d been a genuine innocent. She doubted the Doctor was ever going to believe she’d just found it lying there… the tiny earth creature, dead. Who in their right mind would believe the dead rodent had been nothing to do with the Time Lady? Hell, Missy was even starting to doubt herself! 

“I didn’t do it,” Missy declared when the racing thoughts became too much. “I promise.” 

“It’s raining cats and dogs out there,” the Doctor said, not seeming to have heard Missy. “Not literally, it’s an earth saying. Have you heard that one? I learned it in my sixth body.” 

Missy frowned, anger beginning to bubble away with her anxiety as the Doctor remained oblivious. As he spoke, Missy caught the strong aroma of rum and ginger., suddenly realising that it must have been Thursday night staff drinks again. That would account for the lateness. 

“Doctor,” Missy hissed, voice breaking in frustration. “Did you hear me? I said I didn’t do it!"

The rum and ginger had clearly made the Doctor placid and a light- hearted chuckle echoed around the room. 

“Those words coming from your lips always sound ominous,” the Doctor laughed, turning to face Missy. 

His expression turned quickly from jovial to serious as he caught sight of Missy staring at him in wide eyed horror. 

“Omega, Missy, what have you done?”

“I didn’t do anything!” Missy shouted in response. “I found it there this morning. It was already dead and I know you’re not going to believe me but…Doctor…I haven’t killed anything in nearly a century. That is a big thing for me and I promise you I didn’t kill this thing.” 

The Doctor’s eyebrows shot up, dancing around his face as he tried to keep up with Missy’s words. As she finished he finally followed her line of vision to the make-shift grave. Crossing the floor, he crouched down and pulled back the tissues to reveal the body of a tiny dormouse. Turning back to face Missy, he watched as she resolutely turned away and scrunched her eyes shut. It wasn’t because she was saddened by the passing of an earth creature she didn’t even recognise but instead because the sight of death brought with it such temptation for the Time Lady. 

Scooping up the mouse, the Doctor silently left the vault and disposed of the body. He quickly returned and found Missy in exactly the same position as he had left her. Her eyes were still firmly closed and she was humming lightly to herself. The Doctor noticed the glimmer of fear that had come to rest on her features, but he couldn’t decide if it was fear of his reaction or fear of what she would do if she got too close to death.

“Missy,” the Doctor said with a kind firmness. The smell of rum and ginger her still lingered in the room but the Doctor’s slurred words had sobered. “Open your eyes.” 

Missy did and relief flooded her features as she noticed the rodent corpse was no more. 

“I didn’t kill it,” Missy repeated with a pleading edge to her voice. “I promise.” 

“I know,” the Doctor reassured. “Missy I’ve been finding dead rodents in that corner since we got here. Let’s just say the engineers behind building this place were about as competent as the executioners were at executing you. There’s been a crack in the corner for decades, I’ve always managed to find the pests before you in the past.” 

“Why have I never seen them?” Missy asked, looking over at the corner and seeing the tiny crack for the first time. “I live here.” 

“I got there first,” the Doctor reasoned. “I didn’t want you to be…look, I thought seeing death might be some kind of trigger for you. Judging by your reaction, I was right.” 

“I…I was worried you’d hate me,” Missy sighed. “And death…it smells the same on every species. Smelling that smell again, it takes me back to the thrill of the kill.” 

“I know,” the Doctor said, nodding in understanding. “But you did the right thing today, Missy.”

Missy looked at the Doctor uncertainly, relief was evident on her features but she quickly pushed it away and pouted. 

“This is why you shouldn’t go to Thursday night drinks.”

The Doctor laughed, noticing the Time Lady was keen to move away from her show of vulnerability.

“Susie from HR gets flirty after too much alcohol, that’s another reason,” he joked, smiling at the Time Lady. “Missy, I’m proud of you, you know? Nearly a century is amazing progress for you.” 

Missy blinked and nodded at the praise. 

“Nearly a century,” she repeated as though she didn’t quite believe it herself. Shaking herself, she looked up at the Doctor with a wry smile. “I’ll tell you something though… I could kill for a decent cup of tea.”


End file.
